


The Best Brothers (are the ones who remember)

by Anonymous



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Incest, M/M, Pre-Surface Undertale, Reader is an OC, Reader is male, Resets, Slow-ish burn, Temporary Character Death, Terminal Illness, Timeline Shenanigans, because he is a skeleton, male SKELETON reader, male reader - Freeform, oh yeah i forgot to mention that reader is a skelebro, okay listen okay, reader is an OC because he's a skeleton, skeleton, who is also an oc - Freeform, yes you heard me
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2020-02-06
Packaged: 2020-08-20 17:48:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20231878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: As a lonely skeleton living in New Home by yourself, it was inevitable that this would happen.You're sick, with only a few months left to live, if anything your doctor says is to be trusted.So you go back home to visit your brothers, Sans and Papyrus.Except... things are weird.There's a human. And Sans is acting odd.





	1. gyftmas time sadness

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Future of Yours](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7409542) by [UnknownRegion](https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownRegion/pseuds/UnknownRegion). 

You came home with a small grin on your face and a small bounce in your step. 

Usually, returning to the small, dark apartment you called ‘home’ was not such a cheerful affair, but that’s because today was _ Friday _. And Friday’s were special, because it was the one day of the week where you had contact with your brothers.

And it was in the form of a ‘movie night’. Of course, with you being in the Capital and them still living in Snowdin, it wasn’t realistic to expect either them or yourself to make the journey just to put a single VHS in and then go right back.

You were… you were simply too far away. It… It was _ nobody’ _s fault.

Haha… Get it? Nobody? Because you were a family of skeletons.

Ha… you eldest brother, Sans, would get a kick out of that one.

Maybe you should ask Papyrus to put him on the phone before movie night started.

Oh, right! Movie night came in the form of watching Mettaton’s weekly cooking show while on speaker phone with Papyrus. It was far from perfect, but it’s been a tradition for the five years since you’ve moved out.

You settled down on the couch, dialling up Papyrus and grabbing a bag of chips close to yourself as you put the TV on, changed it to the correct channel and muted it. The dial rang for a few moments before the call picked up.

Some rustling… “HELLO! LELEE, BROTHER! I’VE BEEN EXPECTING YOUR CALL!” Your older brother, Papyrus exclaimed. Ah… you momentarily had to hold the phone away from your skull… it seems in the week that you’ve been off the phone with him, you’d forgotten how loud he could be.

“I sure hope so, it’s movie night.” You replied in a teasing voice once you recovered, “Ah… How’s your week been?”

“BETTER NOW THAT I’M TALKING TO YOU!.....”

“Aww, that’s - “

“SANS!!! SANS!!!!” Your brother got ten times louder, which was cause to bring the headphones away again, but you didn’t want to miss hearing what was said next.

“OUR PRECIOUS BABY BROTHER IS ON THE LINE, COME SAY HI!”

… More shuffling…

It was at least a minute before Sans presumably dragged himself over to Papyrus, but you didn’t mind. You hadn’t talked to your brother since… Jeez… it must have been almost a month now…

But… that’s odd… It feels like much, much longer.

Ah ... that's strange…. You’re tired again. Like you’ve been for the past few weeks… 

But even those weeks feel like they’ve been going by for years.

What was it that your doctor had said? Exhaustion and changed perception of time were symptoms of your… condition.

Oh, fantastic. You were suddenly too tired to go through with this…

… But that didn’t mean you couldn’t pretend.

“lelee?” The sound of your eldest brother, Sans’, voice roused you out of your depressing thoughts. There was a grating sound through the speaker, and you could tell he was scratching at the back of his skull.

“Sans! Hey! How’ve you been?”

“it’s, uh…. i’ve been good… heh… no _ fib _ula.”

You spared a short laugh at his joke, looking at the clock. It was close to the time Mettaton’s show would be starting. Well. The one you were looking forward to.

“Well… that’s nice.” Ugh. Your vocabulary was obviously severely limited. But. You’d chalk it up to the strain and mental exhaustion from your condition. Heh. You’ve had it for two weeks and you’re already blaming it for everything.

“Did you get your gyftmas present…?”

Papyrus had already sent you photos of himself flaunting the red gloves you’d bought him a week ago, so you already knew they’d received the presents, but it was a conversation topic nonetheless.

“uuuuhhhhhh…”

“HE DID!” Papyrus chimed in, probably across the room. His eavesdropping skills were legendary, how ever. “IT WAS THE MITTENS, SANS… THE ONE’S YOU’RE WEARING RIGHT NOW!”

The microphone picked up a lot of shifting, and you knew it was back in the hands of Papyrus when his booming voice started talking again, closer.

“HE WEARS THEM EVERYWHERE! AS DO I WITH MY GIFT!”

The heavy rock on your SOUL lightened, and a smile came over your face.

“That’s great! I, uh, wasn’t sure you’d appreciate the theme.”

“THE THEME??? THE THEME OF COOL AND THOUGHTFUL GIFTS??”

“No, bro…” You giggled, “The ‘Hand’ theme.”

“...”

“heheheheheheh…” You heard Sans’ reaction first, as Papyrus was silent.

“BRADLEY HAND SKELETON! YOU…. JOKESTER!!”

You fully laughed now, relishing in your brother’s indignance.

“Ah, ah, t’was but a simple jape. I hope it doesn’t ruin the gifts?”

“.... *SIGH*.... WHY DOES SOMEONE AS GREAT AS ME….. NEVER MIND, OF COURSE NOT, LELEE. A GIFT FROM YOU IS ALWAYS A TREASURE…. NO MATTER THE MOTIVATION BEHIND IT…”

“That’s good… the show’s starting, though. Better get to it…”

“RIGHT, YES… I’M CURIOUS, THOUGH. HAVE YOU RECEIVED YOUR GIFT IN THE POST, YET? I’M SURE SANS SENT IT QUITE A WHILE AGO BY NOW…”

You thought back to the last time you’d visited your PO box. It was yesterday… you’ve been pretty eager to see what your brothers got you.

It was silly… only Snowdin really ever celebrated Gyftmas, but it was a tradition in your family. You’d started to think that maybe it was a tradition the three of you had grown out of. Seeing as… seeing as you hadn’t received a gift in the week since Gyftmas had passed.

“No. Nothing… I checked yesterday. I’ll check again, tomorrow, if that’s good?”

“HMMM…. EITHER SOMEBODY IS SLACKING… OR…. AH….. EXCUSE ME FOR A FEW MOMENTS, LELEE, IT SEEMS I MUST HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH SANS.”

“NOTHING RELATING TO YOUR MISSING GYFTMAS PRESENT… UM… YOU START THE SHOW WITHOUT ME… THIS SHOULDN’T TAKE LONG…”

You… very much doubted that.

You thought about muting the call, not wanting to eavesdrop since you were still on speaker phone…. But…. you were too curious.

“SANS! OUR DEAREST BROTHER JUST TOLD ME HE NEVER RECEIVED HIS GYFTMAS PRESENT. PLEASE, _ PLEASE _ TELL ME YOU REMEMBERED TO SEND IT.”

Oh.. that was… 

“SANS!!! I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU! NOT RECALIBRATING YOUR PUZZLE IS ONE THING… FORGETTING ABOUT OUR DEAR BROTHER IS ANOTHER!! I’M SCANDALIZED! HOW COULD YOU!”

Sans’ voice was much softer… you couldn't hear what he was saying. Papyrus’ responses weren’t painting a pretty picture, though.

“REALLY NOW? IS THAT WHAT WE’RE GOING TO DO? HMMM… LET ME ‘CALIBRATE’ IN MY HEAD THE CHANCES OF THAT LIE WORKING… IT’S ZERO! HAVE YOU NO INTEGRITY? ‘LOST IN THE POST’?!”

“SANS!!! NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR PUNS… WHAT IS A ‘POST MORTEM,’ ANYWAYS???”

Oh… well… that was… more than you needed to hear.

Sans… the brother who had raised you… had… forgotten you? On Gyftmas? Well… that certainly hurt…

But… maybe he was busy.

You always remembered him as being busy when you were younger.

“Hello?” You called out, assuming their phone was still on speaker phone and that they could hear you.

“OH! LELEE… DID YOU… HEAR THAT? NEVER MIND! YOU DIDN’T HEAR ANYTHING!”

“It’s fine… um… I’m getting tired, and I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow, so I’ll just… I’ll just check in early. Have a nice night, though.”

“OH!! DON’T GO, NYEH… I SWEAR SANS DIDN’T MEAN ANYTHING BY IT… EH??? DOCTOR’S APPOINTMENT?? DIDN’T YOU GO TO ONE OF THOSE TWO WEEKS AGO?”

You sighed. “Yeah… it’s… i’ve just been tired lately, that’s all.”

You didn’t want to tell him. He’d be worried and… you didn’t want that. You wanted the last few months or so with them that you had to be nice.

Funny how you were already calling them your last few months.

“I…. TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, BROTHER…”

You cleared your throat to avoid the sounds of you choking up. You were not crying, you _ would not _ cry, you _ would not _ cry…. Not over something as <strike>special</strike> unimportant as Gyftmas. It was a <strike>special</strike> dumb tradition anyways..

“I will, Papyrus. I love you.”

“I LOVE YOU TOO.”

“... Tell Sans… Tell him that I love him, too, okay?”

“I WILL, BROTHER…”

You were the first to hang up. You just… couldn’t take it anymore.

You were so tired, and the pressure on your SOUL was only getting worse by the moment… fuck… this couldn’t be good for your condition.

  


… The temptation to do a quick ‘CHECK’ on yourself was strong, but you resisted. You wouldn’t be able to decipher anything from your STATS, anyways, and you were going to the doctor tomorrow, anyhow.

She’d be able to tell you how long it was until you Fall Down.

+++++++++++++++

  


To say that Sans was disappointed with himself was an…. Inaccurate statement.

He knew he _ should _ be disappointed, he should feel guilty….

But he didn’t.

It wasn’t even really his fault that he forgot.

(or at least that’s what he told himself.)

It was the RESETS. He’s sure he’s delivered that package a hundred times by now - and here he was, the one time he forgot - give him a break.

It’s not like it would matter next timeline, either way.

This would all just be erased, then Sans could deliver the package and his brothers would go back to being happy and innocent, and ignore any signs that something might be off.

.. But…

Something did concern him.

There’d been so many resets he’d stopped counting at least a dozen ago.

He was starting to forget stuff, he knew that…

… But he didn’t know he was starting to forget his youngest brother…

When Papyrus had called him over to talk to the kid on the phone… he… was ashamed to say he had no idea who the hell his brother was talking about.

… Which is why he was now digging through a box of his old garbage, looking over old pictures and items that belonged to his youngest brother… ‘Bradely’.

Lelee for short… according to Papyrus.

In Sans’ photos, he was a tiny skeleton monster who held a striking resemblance to himself. Just… more proportionate. Thinner bones, thinner skull. 

Sans had a rather good time going through baby photos - good enough that he could feel his SOUL happily humming… it hasn’t done that for… since the RESETS started.

Concerningly, he still didn’t remember any of the events from the photos, but they were nice to look at and held a great sense of nostalgia.

It had Sans thinking that maybe he should call up Bradely on his own time.

Apologize.

Maybe he should even bring that gift in person… it’s only one short cut away, after all.

… if he could remember where his youngest brother lived…

Shouldn’t be too hard, right?

Papyrus had to know, at least…


	2. the future

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> you and your doctor have a talk about the future and you get terminated.

The doctor’s office was a pleasant building.

The walls were painted in soft pastels, there were many windows, and plants covered every available surface.

Since monster illnesses had more to do with the SOUL than any physical ailment, this was quite common. Pleasant rooms helped raise mood and mental stability.

Anything that required emergency healing was taken to an emergency room, which were less thoughtfully decorated - monster General Practices were more for checking your STATS, interpreting them and also your mana flow.

It’s advised to visit at least once a year, but check-ups in the case of unusual HP drop, mana sluggishness or exhaustion are strongly encouraged. In fact, those symptoms are why you’d visited two weeks ago in the first place.

What the doctor had found was… not pretty.

And what she was going to tell you was not going to be pretty, either, if the solemn look on her face was any indication as she looked over your SOUL readings.

“Mr. Skeleton…” She started,

“Just Bradley will do, Doc.” You corrected tiredly. The fatigue was getting worse everyday… pretty soon you were sure you wouldn’t be able to work a full shift without taking a nap.

“Well, Mr. Bradley, I don’t think I have to tell you, but… your readings aren't good.”

You sighed. Yeah. That’s pretty much what you were expecting. When you tell her so, she nods grimly.

“It seems your PFS has progressed significantly since your last visit. When you came in last time… I gave you an estimate of four months to live. Your STATS have dropped by nearly half… if you continue at the rate you’re going, you will Fall Down in a little over a month.”

Stars… you should basically start writing your last living will  _ now _ . What was Papyrus going to say? Sans?

… Maybe the two of them would be better off without you. They seem to be doing just fine, anyways…

“Okay, Doc, what are my options?”

She looked over the charts one last time before putting them down, sitting in her chair and folding her hands in her lap. She was a tree monster - perfect for the atmosphere of the practice. 

The blossoms that sprouted from her leafy hair were beautiful.

“Well. You have a few. One is obviously to change nothing and Fall Down in a month. Two is to be admitted to a Fall Center and have your family notified. Three… is to move in with your family for full-time care. I would strongly suggest option number three, taking it easy and being surrounded by those you love is a great way to extend your… time here.”

You nodded…

… Ah… It would be nice to go home. Sleep in your old bed, eat some home cooked meals courtesy of your brothers… maybe make them something (stars knows neither of them can cook, and you didn’t spend two years in Mettaton’s kitchens to  _ not _ help out…).

You could go fishing with Papyrus… or make snow skeletons… have real movie nights…

… But would they even want you there?

You gave the doctor a kind smile, “Yeah, well, thanks, Doc. I’ll check my options.”

“Thank  _ you _ , Mr. Bradely. You’re… very strong.” Her voice got quieter as she said the words - you wondered if she’s had many patients with Pre Fall Syndrome, and early onset at that… or maybe if she’s had a relative or close friend who’s Fallen.

She cleared her throat, then, instantly back to business.

“Well, then. Whatever your decision, all you need to do is call the office to have your records transferred over to another practice.”

You nodded your head, giving her a reassuring smile. She obviously was upset over… the terminal part of your illness.

Probably more upset than you to be honest…

It’s… It’s not like you’re  _ not _ upset. PFS was pretty much a one-way ticket to Falling Down, and nobody had ever recovered from  _ that _ . So, yeah. It’s not like you  _ weren’t _ upset. 

Twenty Two, especially for a monster, is an extremely young age to die.

Most monsters who developed PFS were at  _ least _ a few centuries old. Pre Fall Syndrome was the precursor to actually falling down - characterized by lack of HoPe, reduced mana flow and fatigue. It usually developed due to severe depression.

… It was getting more common, nowadays. It’s harder to retain HoPe after several milenia trapped under a mountain.

Still, though… It’s not so common for someone  _ your _ age…. 

Your magic had just capped a year ago, after all… you hadn’t even gotten your first heat… there were…. there were so many things you’d never get to experience…

You’d never see the sun…

The night… 

The  _ stars _ …

“H-Have a nice day…” You told your doctor, standing from the exam table. She gave you a gentle smile.

You didn’t want to look at her sad eyes.

“Stop by the receptionist to get a note for work.” She said.

And that was it.

You left, getting the note from the man who sat at the front desk. He smiled at you. You smiled back.

How funny was it that nobody but you and your doctor knew that you were dying.You were certain he wouldn’t smile at you if he knew. You relished in the normalcy of it, though. It was so much nicer than pitying looks.

…

You walked home. There was nowhere in new home you technically  _ couldn’t _ walk, but it would take such a long time that most simply did not bother. Most took the city trolleys that rocketed through the narrow streets.

They were pulled by a team of beefy monsters who liked to flex and flirt off the clock. Nice guys… just not your nor most monsters’ types.

You watched as a trolley shot past, the monsters pulling it were whooping and laughing, goading each other to go faster. The monsters inside were used to the behavior, and sat and stood calmly inside, reading the daily paper or looking over their phones.

… maybe a few months ago, the sight would have caused you to laugh or smile.

Now, you simply turned back to your path and continued to walk back home.

There was a long list of things you needed to do, and your time to complete them wasn’t getting any longer…

… You needed to pack up your stuff, call your work and inform them that you will be unable to work pretty soon… you needed to talk about your lease with your landlord, you needed to… call your brothers.

You’ll leave that one for last.

It was a small blessing from the stars that you didn’t have a lot, only a closet of clothes and your cutlery and plates, your sheets and a few picture frames of you and your brothers, along with some small knick knacks and toiletries.

Your landlord, bless his heart, had gifted you most of the furniture when you’d moved in. The rest of it, like extra chairs or your dresser, you decided to leave as a ‘thank you’.

… Your house was much emptier seeming, now. There was almost nothing in the previously only sparsely decorated space.

With a sigh, you put the small amount of boxes you had into your dimensional boxes and picked out a few outfits to put in your dresser for the next few days. You didn’t plan on spending much longer in this place, anyways. It's served as a decent home for a few years, but it was time to part.

Since it was still rather early, you went over to your landlord’s apartment and rapped on the door softly. The old frog-like monster answered amiably and asked if you would like to stay over for lunch.

You agreed. He smiled at you, right up until you told him that you wouldn’t be renewing your lease, and gave him your last payment.

You told him to keep your security deposit.

When you explained that you were sick, he gave you those same sad eyes.

… that’s two people who know besides yourself, now. You called your manager and requested to have a meeting with her the next day. Tomorrow, it would be three.

Sleeping that night was surprisingly easy. You supposed it came with the territory of PFS. You didn’t dream at all. You left the box of take-out on the counter for Morning You to deal with. Morning You was not impressed.

You showered quickly and ate a bagel on your way to work.

You contemplated what to do with the leftover groceries in your fridge.

…. The manager was waiting for you, as soon as you walked in. She ushered you into her office and asked you what you’d like to speak out. First, you handed her the note from your doctor.

After only a few minutes, she stopped you and called someone else.

“I’m sorry, I’m not qualified to handle this,” She informed you, “ _ My _ boss handles all terminations.”

“... I’m not being terminated?”

“Termination, quitting, it’s all the same.” She stood up and left. You were fairly sure that statement broke some kind of law.

You noted that, per usual, her temperament was like the ice she was made of. If she was human, you wondered if she’d have a heart of stone. 

It was a thirty minute wait until the door burst open once again. Shocked, you spun in your seat only to see Mettaton, box form, wheel himself up to the desk. He smacked his robotic hands down on the desk and hauled himself up on top of it.

He extended his arms long enough to tap his fingers on the desk, like he was sitting.

… You didn’t know what to say.

Luckily, he’d already planned out a small dialogue of his own.

“Morning, darling!” The little screens on his face flashed into a smile, “And it certainly is! My cooking show last night got  _ killer _ ratings! Did you watch it?”

Before you could answer, he continued, “But a little birdy told me someone in this room was inquiring about… voluntary termination?”

You were fairly certain that’s not what it was called.

“...”

It was… a little odd to be telling Mettaton that you were putting in your notice. Technically, as the owner of the fancy-shmancy restaurant you worked in, he  _ was _ your boss… but he seemed far too above a simple chef like yourself.

“Well, do go on! I’m a busy bot!” Was it just you, or did elevator music accompany his every movement?

A brief joke of calling him a  _ busy bot-ty _ flashed through your skull, but you refrained.

You picked at the spaces between your joints as you spoke, keeping your eyes on the desk rather than the camera you knew he saw out of.

“Mettaton… sir… I’m here to put in my notice.”

The drumming of his fingers gained a little speed, became a little more vigorous. You didn’t know any better than to say he was getting impatient.

“Well your boss told me  _ that _ , little skele, I want to know  _ why _ . Tell me, not enough vacation days? Too many hours, not  _ enough _ hours?!” He took in a dramatic breath he  _ didn’t _ need, and continued before you could speak. “Speak  _ up _ , darling! I have a one  _ hundred _ percent employee satisfaction rate! Nobody has  _ ever _ qui - ahem, been voluntarily terminated.”

More than a little intimidated, you flinched at his tone.

“My… prerogative… has shifted.” You told him hesitantly.

“We have plenty of career options within my franchise, then, darling! Do you want a promotion? Demotion? To be moved to a different department?”

You shook your head, “No. I’m… currently focused on spending time with my family.”

Mettaton quirked his big, boxy frame to give you a questioning look, his screen flashing into several question marks.

“I  _ can _ increase your PTO allowance… let me go through your file…” A loading screen flashed over his ‘face’, as he presumably searched through your record.

“Ahh… You haven’t used any of your PTO this year… nor last year…”

“...”

“But you  _ have _ turned in  _ two _ doctors notes within the month for work absence... “

You nodded your head, now. “Yes, sir… I have some documents if you would like to see them. I’ve recently been diagnosed with a… terminal… illness.”

You handed over the papers and watched as he scanned them.

He took a few moments to process it.

“Oh… darling… this is….”

You waited for the look of pity he was sure to give you (pity, from a super star such as Mettaton… you’ve sunk low… but… how would that look on his screen face??), but it never came.

“Tragic!” He squealed, “A young city thing such as yourself… diagnosed with a fatal illness far out of your demographic! The drama! You said you had a family, right?”

“... Two brothers?” Though you sounded unsure.

“Two brothers!” He laughed, “By The Stars, this is a hit story already, I can see it!… Hmm… but what medium to convey such tragedy?... A musical! Of course!”

He swung himself off the desk and wheeled over to the door, flinging it open once again.

“W-wait,” You called out, following him to rest a bony hand on the top of his boxy physic. A little difficult since was still taller than you… “What about my, uh, voluntary termination?”

He spun and faced you, screen flashing excitedly, “Don’t worry about  _ that _ darling, you were terminated before I walked into the room. I don’t allow quitting! Use me as a reference, though, if you need… what am I talking about?! You’re practically dead already, toodaloo, darling!”

Your jaw fell as he wheeled away.

… You’d just gotten fired?

….

Well.

Okay.

Works either way.

You picked up your stuff from your locker and started to walk home again. Some of your coworkers wished you well after hearing the news of your ‘termination’. You shrugged and left when they offered to put in a complaint.

You were pretty sure any complaints would end in termination, anyways.

Several more trolleys passed you by on your way to your empty-ish apartment.

Sitting on the floor in your living room, you put the remainder of your belongings into the dimensional boxes on your phone and stared at your contact screen.

… Well… It’s finally time.

You tapped on the icon, and listen to the phone ring.

It picked up.

“.. LELEE?”

“Hey, Paps.” You said.

“LELEE! I’M SO GLAD YOU CALLED! BUT…. UM…. WHY DID YOU CALL? NOT THAT I’M NOT HAPPY YOU CALLED!”

You sighed.

“I… um… I have some time off at work. I was… wondering… if it would be okay for me to come home and visit for a while?”

You were a coward. The weight on your SOUL increased by tenfold at your lie. You didn’t want to tell him, though - to see your brothers looking over you with pity… was something you couldn’t bear.

“OF COURSE!! YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE TO ASK!! COME OVER ANYTIME!! COME OVER NOW!! WAIT - - ARE YOU HERE ALREADY??? OH, YOU SLIPPERY SNAIL, WAS THIS A SURPRISE VISIT???”

That brought a laugh out of your heavy rib cage. “No, Papyrus… I’ll be there tomorrow night, if all goes well, though.”

“FANTASTIC!! HOW LONG WILL YOU BE STAYING?”   
  


You let a deep whistle out from between your teeth, “I don’t know. A month? Maybe longer.”

“WOWIE! THAT CERTAINLY IS A LOT OF TIME OFF! WELL. I WON’T COMPLAIN ABOUT GETTING TO SPEND TIME WITH MY FAVORITE YOUNGER BROTHER!’

A small smile made its way onto your skull, “Yeah… Papyrus… I guess I’ll see you then, okay?”

“NYEH! WE DIDN’T EVEN FINISH OUR MOVIE NIGHT YESTERDAY, THOUGH! ALSO… HOW DID YOUR DOCTOR’S APPOINTMENT GO??”

“Um, goodbye, Papyrus, losing signal... ksshhhhh…. Ah…. ksssshhhh talk to you tomorrow!”

“OH - GOODBYE, BROTHER, SEE YOU TOMORROW!!”

  
You hung up, then promptly let your head fall back onto the side of your couch and passed out. It’s been a  _ long _ day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ::::::DDDDDDDD
> 
> HI!! Me again. Thanks for reading!! I already got so many kudos for this after just one day, I'm so happy! Thanks for the support, and leave a comment if you want to say something or chat about the story!
> 
> And don't worry, there WILL be interaction between the brothers and Reader next chapter!! ;D


	3. On The Roooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaad Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You go home \o/

The next day started nicely enough. You woke up on the floor - which was always fun - and had to rummaging through your fridge for the last morsels of food from your last grocery run - which was you don’t know how long ago - consisting of a mostly empty carton of eggs, some milk and orange juice.

Surprisingly convenient for a meal of scrambled eggs and orange juice. (although you dreaded doing dishes, especially on your last day in the apartment).

With everything packed, you left your house a free monster.

_ Well, as free a monster as someone with your condition was going to get. _

The journey to Snowdin would take most of the day, and though there was no sun in the Underground, monsters followed a strict time schedule for the sake of working hours and general organization.

Which meant that as you left your house at nine ‘o clock in the morning, you had about twelve hours until public transportation shut down. (Since the Underground was so small, it didn’t make sense for trolleys or boats to keep hours so late.)

The trolley ride from where you were - Northern Capital - was not direct. There wasn’t a direct trolley line from one section of the underground to another - in fact, there weren’t  _ any _ trolleys out side of New Home.

Besides that, there wasn’t even a direct trolley line from NC to SC (Southern Capital). If one wanted to travel from the Northern district to the Southern, they had to combine about four trolley rides with quite a bit of walking in between.

Maybe next voting round for what the Royal Treasury should be spent on you should check off that ‘public transportation’ box. It wasn’t very popular since, again, most residents of The Underground didn’t travel often, nor did they stray far from home when they did besides for work.

It was a nice thought, until you remembered that the year’s voting rounds had happened around two months ago, and so wouldn’t be happening again for awhile.

Certainly not in time for  _ you _ to vote.

But maybe you could drop a few hints to your brothers? Just because  _ you _ were going to be dust didn’t mean there wasn’t some kid similar to yourself who needed a hand.

Well. There was little merit to dwelling on those thoughts - fixating on your impending demise would only make your condition worse. Or. At least the little packet about PFS that your doctor had given you had advised.

Plus, you were supposed to be taking it easy. Going to live with family for awhile.

This is what you told yourself as you bought your first trolley ticket of the day.

(They couldn’t be pre-ordered. You had to buy them in person.)

The walk from the  _ ticket _ station to the  _ trolley _ station only offered more time for your bleak thoughts to run rampant, though.

Thankfully, cheering from the muscular monsters manning the trolley lightened your mood, if only slightly.

“Welcome to The North Capital Trolley Line! :D” One of them yelled, giving you a thumbs up as you borded the vehicle.

“North Capital, the COOLEST district! Only The COOLEST monsters ride this line!! ;D” Another cheered.

“I guess the same goes for those who run it!” You exclaimed, back, smiling at the way they all hooted in agreement.

“Come back at the end of my shift and I’ll show you a REAL cool time! ;))” The one who first called out to you offered, flexing his (admitedly impressive) biceps. You felt your skull flush as you nervously waved the offer off and scrambled into the main compartment.

“Offer’s still up! :D” You heard from outside.

Oh… stars…

As many times as you’d been hit on by one of the Line Men, you could never stop the way you flustered….

… Ahh…. he did have really nice muscles…

Not that you were going to be back in NC by the time his shift ended. Or ever.

The sudden reminder dragged you back into your previous mood. Huh. You could’t even start a relationship with him if you’d wanted. It’d be needlessly cruel to do so then up and Fall.

Oh well. Maybe in another life.

And the thought of it was so attractive, that for the rest of the day, through the multiple rides, buying of tickets and walks, you found yourself daydreaming about this ‘different life’.

_ Maybe a life where you’d never left home? Maybe then you’d feel the same flow that you could sense between your brothers - even over the phone. You’d be happy together, you were certain. Just the three of you. _

_ Or maybe you’d have found some other monster to settle down with? - Not too far from home, obviously. The two of you would have some sort of meet-cute, perhaps a run-in at Grillby’s, or they’d offer you an umbrella as you idly walked through waterfall. _

_ And as the time went by, the two of you would grow closer. _

_ Papyrus would want to meet them, first, definitely. He’d be friendly to your face, but interrogate your lover behind closed doors, showing that rarely used scarily stern expression. And Sans? _

_ Sans would play it cool, both to your face and to your hypothetical partner. He’d tell jokes, most likely about the type of monster they were. Your partner would be nervous, but quickly grow out of it when they realized how friendly your eldest brother was. _

_ And when you finally moved out, it would be a bittersweet moment. Your brothers would hug you and Papyrus would probably cry. He’d be the first to bring you a hand-made housewarming gift, and probably plan a surprise party in your own house. _

But.

Again. This would only ever happen in another life. And, like most of your thoughts that day, only lead you down darker paths.

By the time you’d reached the end of the trolley lines, and subsiquently, the end of New Home, your demeanor was far from happy. Vaguely, your thoughts went back to circle around how  _ terrible _ this was for your health, but you were unable to stop the mental rumination regardless.

It was not for a lack of trying, however - you routinely looked around your surroundings - the large lava pools of hotland, or the giant metal tower of The Core - as a way to think of literally  _ anything else _ .

Unlike New Home, the rest of the Underground was rather static. In the city, shops would open and close, signs would change and the people were always new.

Hotland, though more busy than Waterfall or Snowdin, was no different than the first time you’d made your journey down this way. Albeit, the puzzles were never easy to solve. You were glad that you didn’t have enough belongings that they couldn’t fit in your phone, because it would surely be difficult to traverse this path with luggage.

For some reasons, the elevators were down. Indefinitely.

Once you were out of Hotland (a rather abrupt transition via bridge that lead to the swampy marsh of Waterfall), the landscape took over monster-made buildings.

It was darker, here. The air was humid and had a chill to it that became more prominent the further you got from Hotland. There were no sounds besides the dripping of water, the occasional frog or rustling from a hidden monster.

Those who chose to live in Waterfall either did it out of necessity or because they preferred a quiet place where they could live unbothered. Not even you, who had traveled here quite often as a kid, knew (or had even seen) a fourth of the residents in this section of the Underground.

Shy as those who lived here were, there were significantly less puzzles (as long as you avoided the winding, twisting and  _ broken _ bridge that had been under construction oh-so-long ago back when people were more concerned about going from one place to another), which made traveling much easier.

… It didn’t stop you from wishing you owned a pair of rain boots, though.

Or an umbrella.

You stopped to sit with the field of echo flowers for a hot minute, listening to wishes of smaller monsters, conversations between lovers or idle chatter.

One of the flowers had even gotten the melody of a song stuck in your head. It wasn’t one you recognized, though this wasn’t much of an achievement seeing as you’d only listened to Mettaton’s music for the past two years.

After a long trip - a glance at your phone told you that it’d been  _ eight hours _ since you’d started from your house - you were  _ giddy _ to see the large wall of mist that seperated Waterfall from Snowdin.

You walked into it with your arms spread, feeling the dampness that had clung to your clothes from Waterfall cling to your bones and turn into little droplets that made it look like you’d just stepped out of a shower.

It reminded you of when you were scolded by your eldest brother for getting your new clothes all wet after you’d ventured into Waterfall with a pack of monsters your age and returned looking and smelling like, quote, ‘a pack of wet dogs’.

When you emerged the other side, you were struck by the sight of Gyftmas lights up ahead - the sleepy town, you knew, wouldn’t get around to taking them down for another few months or so.

It was a sight that nearly brought you to tears.

The emotions in your SOUL - how they were starting to rise up, all at once - all the loneliness from those years away from home, the longing for a calmer place and the nostalgia of playing in the snow with your brothers is what did you in.

Fat, pink tears rolled down your cheekbones, even as you tried to quell them with the sleeves of your sweater.

Bones rattling from the frigid sweater that was now stuck to your bones curtosey of the quickly freezing water, you walked towards the town.

(You didn’t resist the temptation to make at least two snowmen on the way, or write your name in the snow with a twig, or throw a few snowballs at hidden cameras that you and the other kids had found  _ ages _ ago.)

As you passed the librarby and small houses on the outskirts of town, you waved heartily to other monsters who happened to be out, receiving smiles and greetings.

  
  


_ “By the stars! You’re that one skeleton brother, aren’t you?.... Blakely? Glad to see you’re back, B! How was New Home?” _

  
  


_ “Hey, didn’t know you’d be back in town! Shame, you missed Gyftmas. I know they don’t celebrate it in the city.” _

  
  


_ “You look like you’ve been through the Four Sectors… wait… you have! You look pretty good, then, friend!” _

  
  


_ “A Gyftmas miracle! You know, I was just telling Grillby that it was too bad so many people were moving to the Capital...” _

  
  


By the time you’d reached your house, you’d shaken so many hands and smiled so much that you felt like your face might have been permanently stuck in a wide grin, and your hand sore from the firm grip of many a sentries who’d recognized you.

Your fingers were trembling from nervousness as well as cold as you took a small key out of your Inventory (labeled ‘home key’, even after all this time).

The lock slid open easily, unchanged throughout the years.

As to be expected of the time (around six), neither of your brothers were home. You decided to surprise them with a ‘welcome home’ meal.

After, of course, you put your stuff into your old room (the only one on the ground floor, right below the bathroom), which had been untouched since your departure - although it was obvious that Papyrus had kept up dusting and washing the sheets, as it smelled and looked pristine. Something about that made your SOUL feel warmer than it has in awhile.

With new, dry clothes on, you went about your mission of a nice family dinner.

For some reason, the fridge only had left over pasta… and the pantry only had marinara sauce and pasta noodles… (and the little dinosaur-egg oatmeal that Sans knew both you and Papyrus were fond of).

Well… guess you’ll have to make due… besides, it’s not like you’ve had spaghetti in awhile.

(On second thought… maybe it was a good thing you’d been gone… you don’t know if you couold have handled having nothing but pasta for however long this has been going on…)

…

As it was a simple dish, you allowed yourself to check out as you stirned noodles and seasoned the sauce, idly humming that tune from the echo flower…

You didn’t even realize how late it was getting, late enough that your brothers should have been home any minute…

“yo, paps, what’s cookin’...? smells different than you’re regular… uh… culinary masterpieces.”

You whirled on the spot, quite shocked to hear someone speak while you were cooking - after living alone for so long, there was a sort of panic to see someone in your living space.

It was just Sans, though.

Looking just as shocked as you were as he dropped a bottle of something Red on the ground.

“.... Surprise?” You tried after a few moments of tense staring.

“... bradley?” He asked, sounding unsure. Like… he didn’t know if he was right. Which was ridiculous, because he’s your older brother… there’s no way he didn’t recognize you… it’s only been two years…

“Caught red  _ handed _ .” You shrugged.

When all else fails with Sans, making puns about your name seems a good rule to follow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long update time! I've been a little busy as of late.
> 
> And. Well. This chapter was mostly filler because I wanted to show the journey from New Home to Snowdin, as well as kind of the emotional climate...
> 
> If you've noticed, most monsters have given up on straying too far from home or traveling at all... after all, what's the point... when you live in a cave...?


	4. seriously sans are you okay wtf is up you're sweating alot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans is... a little off.
> 
> Okay.
> 
> A lot off.

It didn’t work - which was a worrying first. Never in all your years of being Sans’ brother had a pun failed to get a reaction out of him. The lid of the ketchup bottle on the floor dripped some of the viscous red condiment.

There was some of it dripping out of the corner of your brother’s mouth, like he’d been too surprised to swallow.

“Sans…?” You took a step towards him, reaching out - but…

He flinched away, stepping back.

HIs eye lights buzzed out and his fists clenched. 

“that’s… this has never…”

“I wanted to surprise you, I’m… sorry I didn’t call ahead of time.” You apologized, stepping back yourself to wrap your arms around your rib cage. It was undeniably painful to watch someone you cared for have such a reaction to you…

“y-yeah,” Sans blurted, “i mean, no, no… you… you’re good, you didn’t need to, i mean….” He took a few quick steps to you, holding out his arms, “fuck… i just… it’s been awhile, huh? c’me’ere, buddy..”

You hesitantly went forward, stepping into his range. He just as cautiously put his arms around you, while you stood stiffly. After a few  _ painfully awkward  _ moments, you slowly hugged Sans back, patting his back a few times.

“I’m sorry…” You reiterated, leaning into your older brother a bit more. It’s strange. He’s smaller than you remember him being. In fact, you beat him in height by a few inches. The top of his skull brushes your nasal apeture.

He’s colder than you remember him being, too.

Sans sighs, patting you once before pulling back. You release him easily, shifting from foot to foot as he rubs the back of his cervical vertebrae and sighs.

“no, kid, uh… bradley… b….. you don’t gotta be sorry….”

You can’t get over how  _ unsure _ he sounds. How much of this is just lies to spare your feelings? Does he really not want you here  _ that bad _ ?

“It’s okay, Sans.” You said sadly, “It was a bad surprise. I should have called and told you I was here…”

“it ain’t  _ bad _ … look, i just…” Sans sighed again, louder and more agitated. He didn’t meet your eye lights when he spoke again. “did somethin’ happen? why’re ya… why’re ya visiting  _ now? _ ”

_Asgore, he hates me. I’m an idiot_, you tell yourself. He doesn’t even want to look at you. He was probably glad when you left.

He would probably have been glad if you had never returned.

Fuck. It was too late now, though, right? You had no place back in New Home to stay, other than a Fall Center, and that just…. You’d rather be in a place where you weren’t wanted than a place surrounded by dying monsters who either didn’t have a family or had a family that didn’t care enough to care  _ for _ them.

“I… missed you… and… I got an extended vacation from work…” You lied weakly. The same one you’d told Papyrus. Might as well double down.

But Sans has always known when you were lying to him.

Sans’ eye lights snap towards you, and despite yourself, you almost  _ flinch _ . For a second, he looks  _ nothing _ like your older brother. He looks desperate, confused,  _ lost _ . The moment is over when it is overtaken by something colder.

“that’s it? nothing else? no talking flowers?”

When he talks, it’s slow and critical. Sarcastic, almost.

… Sans hates sarcasm.

You get over your fear quickly as it’s replaced with indignance. What in the stars has gotten into him? This is nothing like the older brother you know.

“No. That’s it. I missed you guys. Is that not enough?”

_ Something _ flashes again through your brother’s eye lights, and the fear returns.

“it wasn’t before.”

What in the  _ stars _ is he talking about? Was this about Gyftmas?

You do a double take at your brother, which is when you notice that Sans is sweating like  _ crazy _ , and your anger is overtaken by concern - is he, is he  _ sick _ ?

“Sans, are you o-”

The front door slams open, and in walks Papyrus. In any other situation, you would be delighted to see your older brother, but you feel like you’re in - what did those human films call it? - the twilight zone at the moment.

“DEAR BROTHER, I HAVE ARRIVED WITH THE SAUCE, WE - “

He stares blankly at where you’re standing, a few feet away from Sans, who looks like he’s about to pass out any second now. You can see the exact moment whenever he notices the ketchup still on the ground, because his nasal ridge scruntches.

“SANS, WHAT IS YOUR KETCHUP DOING ON THE FLOOR?”

He looks back up at you.

“LELEE, WHAT IS SANS’ KETCHUP DOING ON THE FLOOR… WAIT…” His eye sockets narrow… “IS THIS ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR PRANKS, SANS…..”

The eyes Papyrus doesn’t have nearly boggle out of his skull when he gasps.

“WAIT (X2) LELEE!! YOU’RE HOME!!”

He swiftly crosses into the kitchen to hug you close to his rib cage, spouting loudly how glad he is to see you.

It’s rather nice after that whole thing with Sans.

“I KNOW YOU CALLED, BUT I WASN’T SURE WHEN YOU WERE COMING!! I’M SO GLAD YOU’RE HERE!! DID YOU TRAVEL ALL TODAY??? YOU LOOK A LITTLE ROUGH….” He laughs confidently, “ALTHOUGH IT’S NOTHING THAT MY SUPERIOR CULLINARY SKILLS CAN’T FIX! MY SPAGHETTI IS THE PANACEA TO WEARY BONES!!”

“I’m sure…” You tell him, struggling weakly. As nice as this is, there’s still this whole thing with Sans you haven’t gotten figured out, and you would like to do so before he does this neat little trick where he likes to disap-

You look over to where Sans was standing, only to see empty space. Ketchup still on the floor.

Shit. He did it.

Papyrus looks back to where you were staring and heaves out a large sigh.

“I WOULD HAVE AT LEAST HOPED HE’D STAY FOR A ‘FAMILY RENUNION’ PICTURE… I’M SURE, WITH A GROUP AS COOL AS US BROTHERS, IT WOULD HAVE GOTTEN MUCH ADMIRATION FROM MY LOYAL FOLLOWING ON UNDERNET.”

… His loyal following, of course, being you, Sans, Sans’ troll account, Sans’ meme account, Sans’ ‘work’ account and Undyne.

“Yeah…” You reply.

“IS… SOMETHING WRONG, BROTHER? YOU SEEM DOWN.”

You struggle with the decision to tell him the truth. On one skeletal hand, you know that if you  _ don’t _ tell him, then he’ll be dissapointed that you didn’t feel like you could come to him with your problems… if you  _ did, _ though, he might tell you that you’re over reacting,  _ or _ he might get upset at Sans.

… You didn’t want to start a fight on your first day back.

All you’d wanted to do is spend time with your family.

“Long day…” You settled on.

Papyrus nodded empathetically, starting his work in the kitchen. It brought you back to the good old days when he would listen to you ramble on about school or your latest hyper-fixation as he made cookies or something.

He was the  _ worst _ chef, but burnt food was nostaglic for you at this point.

Wait.. burnt food…

“Ack! My pasta!” You yelp, rushing to the stove.

Luckily, the pasta is all good and nothing’s boiled over.

“OH! YOU STARTED DINNER ALREADY? HOW CONSIDERATE!!” Papyrus praised, inspecting the pot.

“I CAN SEE YOUR TIME IN METATTON’S KITCHENS HAVE TAUGHT YOU WELL… ALTHOUGH I DO BELIEVE YOU SHOULD HAVE LET IT RUN A LITTLE HOTTER FOR A FEW MINUTES TO PROPERLY IMBUE YOUR PASSION INTO THE FOOD. ALSO YOUR NOODLES LOOK A LITTLE WATER-LOGGED.”

“Papyrus…” You say slowly, looking back at your brother. Your face must be one of pure confusion. “You do know… that you’re not supposed to set the pasta on  _ fire _ , right?”

The way he mirror’s your expression tells you everything. 

Stars… this entire time… you’d just assumed he’d accidentally burned the food… did he… do it on purpose…? To imbue his… ‘passion’ into it…?

All those awful meals you’ve suffered through…

“FIRE IS WHAT SHOWS YOUR LOVE FOR THE FOOD????”

“Papyrus, bro…”

The incident with Sans is subsiquently forgotten as you explain to Papyrus  _ why _ exactly setting food on fire is not the way to properly prepare it.

You swear… this man is one of the smartest you’ve ever met, yet still so helpless in the kitchen….

… 

It takes about an hour for the two of you to make an edible plate of pasta, and then another half to clean the failed attempts off of the floor and walls. Meanwhile, Papyrus makes quick work of the ceiling with his long limbs.

When the two of you are finished, Papyrus takes his time giving the spaghetti a photo shoot that would rival one of Mettaton’s. You didn’t know pasta had so many angles. He uploads them to Undernet as he explains himself.

“NO ONE’S ASKED FOR MY SUPER SECRET SPAGHETTI RECIPE YET. IT’S FOR THE BEST, CONSIDERING I USUALLY ONLY USE IT FOR MY HUMAN TRAPS, AND IS THUS TOP SECRET. TONIGHT WILL BE THE FIRST TIME I TRY IT… I’M SO EXCITED!!”

He gasps dramatically, “BUT… WHAT IF IT’S SO GOOD THAT I BECOME ADDICTED AND FALL INTO MY OWN TRAPS… OH… WHAT A CHOICE… SACRIFICES OF IMEASURABLE COMPREHENSION….”

You only have one thing on your mind, however.

“Bro, how do you only have pasta in the house and yet have never eaten it…?”

“WE HAVE DINOSAUR OATMEAL IN THE PANTRY.”

…. You don’t know if he realizes this is just as insane sounding. Is he implying that he and Sans have  _ only _ been eating dinosaur oatmeal in the time you’ve been gone???

“I’m going grocery shopping tomorrow.” You decide outloud.

“FANTASTIC!! WE’RE RUNNING LOW ON NOODLES.”

“Papyrus,” You say seriously, “I’m not buying anymore noodles. We  _ have _ noodles. We are  _ swimming _ in noodles. We are up to our  _ ears _ in noodles. We don’t even  _ have _ ears, do you get me?”

“I HEAR AN EXCELLENT NEW TRAP IDEA. WHO NEEDS SPIKES WHEN YOU HAVE A NOODLE MOAT???” His eye sockets narrow, “OR… A NOODLE MOAT  _ WITH _ SPIKES???” He strikes a pose, one hand on his hip, the other on his puffed-out rib cage.

… Stars…

You couldn’t help yourself; you start to laugh.

Papyrus glances at you from where he was posing heroically, and you can see a slight upwards twitch to his grin, a crack in his facade.

“BROTHER…. WHAT IS SO…  _ SNRK _ … WHAT IS SO FUNNY…. ABOUT MY… MY BRILLIANT…” 

He makes it that far before he bursts into his own unique laughter, loud  _ ‘NYEH’S _ that seem to shake the house’s foundation.

_ “Noodle moat…!” _ You gasp.

You laugh until you feel like your little SOUL is going to burst and then some. When Papyrus quiets, you try to follow his lead, although you still wheezed slightly for a good minute after.

“Thanks, Paps, I needed that laugh...” You wheeze out when you’re able.

“I COULD TELL, NYEH…” Papyrus stops himself briefly, but continues. “EARLIER, WITH YOU AND SANS IN THE KITCHEN. I DIDN’T WANT TO SAY ANYTHING, BUT I DID NOT GET A… FRIENDLY VIBE…?”

A small seed of dread buries itself in your SOUL.

“I-It wasn’t, he, he didn’t  _ do _ anything. We just had a silly argument. He was surprised. I should have called and said when I was coming, it’s fine.”

“DON’T LIE TO ME, LELEE… SANS…” Papyrus idly strokes his jaw, “HE’S NOT BEEN HIMSELF LATELY. I COULD TELL HE WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF ONE OF HIS EPISODES EARLIER. WHATEVER YOU THINK YOU DID… IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT.”

“What… What do you mean, Paps?”

You recalled how off he’d seemed… how it felt like  _ that _ couldn’t be your brother.

“HE’S ALWAYS BEEN LAZY AND HAD A TERRIBLE SENSE OF HUMOR, AS YOU KNOW… BUT A FEW MONTHS AGO… HE STARTED GETTING WORSE. HE WOULDN’T TELL ME WHY. HE SAID SOME… VERY CONCERNING THINGS. LAST WEEK, HOWEVER…”

Papyrus made an uncertain noise, his gloved hands wringing themselves together.

“WELL. HE’S BEEN HAVING NIGHTMARES, MORE… EPISODES… THAN USUAL AND… HE DOESN’T SEEM TO REMEMBER THINGS AS WELL AS BEFORE. I WANTED TO THINK IT HAD TO DO WITH LACK OF SLEEP, SO I’VE BEEN LETTING HIM NAP MORE, BUT IT’S JUST GETTING WORSE…”

“EVEN I, HIS FAVORITE MIDDLE BROTHER, HAVE BEEN ON THE END OF ONE OF HIS EPISODES…”

Has he really gotten that bad…? Sans adored Papyrus…

But you used to think he held the same sentiment for you, too.

You’re not really sure about anything concerning Sans lately, it seems.

“I had… no idea… Paps… why didn’t you say anything?” You asked, confused. “I would have…”

Well. What would you have done? At about the time Papyrus is talking about, you’d recently been diagnosed with PFS. And, honestly, the thought that you might have spilled the beans makes you feel  _ terrible _ .

Papyrus and Sans have their own troubles… they don’t need to deal with your terminal condition.

“Taken time off.” You concluded. It was true, at least. If you’d thought one of your brothers was sick or in a bad way, you would have been in Snowdin weeks ago.

“IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT, LELEE. I THOUGHT HE WOULD GET BETTER… AND I KNOW HOW MUCH YOU LOVE THE CITY,” right. Definitely. “I DIDN’T WANT YOU TO GIVE UP YOUR DREAMS.”

“Dreams mean  _ nothing _ to me if my family’s not happy.” You reassure your brother, hugging him. Papyrus wraps his arms around you, and overall, it’s much nicer than the hug you shared with Sans this morning.

“I’M SORRY…”

“Don’t be, Paps, it’s not your fault either” You said, “… Is there anything I can do?”

“NOTHING I’VE TRIED HAS WORKED, BUT IT HELPS TO STICK TO A ROUTINE. USUALLY SANS HATES THOSE, BUT EVER SINCE HE’S GOTTEN INTO THIS MOOD, IF ONE THING GOES WRONG HE’S THROWN INTO AN EPISODE. HE LIKES FAMILIAR PLACES, TOO. OUR HOUSE AND GRILLBY’S ARE THE SAFEST BETS TO FIND HIM.”

You nod your head, “Got it.”

Papyrus grins at you and pats your head.

“TO BE HONEST, I WAS WORRIED, BEFORE… BUT WITH BOTH OF US WORKING ON IT, I’M SURE SANS WILL BE BACK TO HIMSELF IN NO TIME!!”

“Yeah.” You reply happily.

Hearing all of that… doesn’t nessicarily make you  _ happy _ , but it does make you feel better about your encounter in the kitchen.

_ He doesn’t hate me. He’s just having a bad time right now. _

“YOU CAN START HELPING BY ALERTING HIM THAT DINNER’S READY.” Papyrus told you with an encouraging grin.

Something akin to determination flared in your SOUL.

… Well. If you’re going to try and help your brother, you might as well start now. There’s no time like the present, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think of an every-other week on Tuesday posting schedule?
> 
> Also.... Wonder what's wrong with Sans...?


	5. NEW FIC

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New fic??????
> 
> I'm a terrible author who can't keep it to one fic??????

Hello, all!!!

If you've read the chapter title, then you're aware that this is not a new chapter, but instead, an endorsement for a new fic!!

I KNOW!! You miss Bradley!! You want to see what's going to happen with our favorite youngest brother!!

HOWEVER, I come bearing offerings. Right [HERE](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22592632/chapters/53991502) is another fic including ALL of our lovely brothers, AND MORE!!

I've been a little uninspired lately, so I decided to give a multiverse fic a try... Using Bradley!!

This fic doesn't have a plot, meaning that I'm taking suggestions from readers about what you'd like to see happen in fic!!

Current skeles in fic are: The classics, Red (UF!Sans), Edge (UF!Papyrus), Blue (US!Sans), and Stretch (US!Papyrus)!! I'm willing to add in more later ;)

So drop by the fic if you'd like!

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Feel free to leave a comment and tell me how you feel about this fic!
> 
> Also, Lelee is pronounced "lay-lee"


End file.
